Nail-extracting hatchet.



E. B. REED.

NAIL EXTRAGTING HATGHET.

APPLICATION FILED FEBJQ, 1914.

Patented Oct. 27, 1914.

I lnven or Witriesses g,

Attorneys @TATES ELMER. B. REED, OF MCDONALD, PENNSYLVANIA.

NAIL-EXTRACTING I-IATGHET.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed February 13, 1914. Serial No. 818,557.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ELMER B. Rune, a citizenof the United States, residing at Mc- Donald, in the countyoflVashington and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and usefulNail-Extracting Hatchet, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention appertains to hatchets, and aims to provide ahatchet provided with novel nail extracting means, whereby the hatchetmay be employed in a convenient and eilicient manner for pulling orextracting nails, the extracting means being so formed and arranged, asnot to encumber the hatchet or interfere with the hammering or choppingqualities thereof.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention resides in the combi nation andarrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafterdescribed and claimed, it being understood that changes in the preciseembodiment of the invention herein disclosed, can be made within thescope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of theinvention.

The invention has been illustrated in its preferred embodiment in theaccompanying drawing, wherein Figure 1 is a side elevation of a hatchetembodying the present invention, a portion of the helve being brokenaway. Fig. 2 is an outer end view of the hatchet.

In the drawing, the numeral 1 designates the hatchet head having theusual eye 2, re ceiving the outer end of the handle or helve 3, the head1 including the striking or hammering end 4:, and the opposed choppingor cutting blade 5, as usual. The outer edge portion 6 of the head 1 ispreferably straight, in order to facilitate the nail extracting propertyof the hatchet embodying the present improvement.

The present improvement resides in the provision of a transversedovetailed slot 7 in the outer edge portion 6 of the hatchet head,adjoining the butt end or basal portion of the striking or hammerportion a, or between the said portion a and the eye 2. The dovetailedslot 7 extends completely between the sides of the head 1, and forms theopposed claw lips 8, the edges of which are preferably slightly curved,and which are arranged at an acute angle with respect to one another.The clove-tailed slot 7 is ta- It will be evident, that the provisionof. the slot 7 in the head 1, as defined, will not encumber the head inany manner, so as to interfere with the hammering or chopping qualitiesof the hatchet.

In employing the hatchet as a nail ex tractor, the slot 7 may readily bepassed over the head of the nail to be extracted or withdrawn, in orderthat the claw lips 8 may engage under the head of the nail, and

in which event, the blade 5 may serve as a fulcrum, when the handle orhelve 3 is swung in the plane of the hatchet, to enable the nail to bereadily and forcibly extracted. This permits a considerable leverage tobe applied to the nail, during the extracting operation, andfurthermore, the strain applied to the handle or helve, will be betweenthe edges of the handle, and not the sides thereof, whereby the handleor helve will not be liable to break.

The tapered slot 7 enables the hatchet to be employed for extractingnails of various sizes as will be apparent, and the present hatchet willalso be found convenient for extracting nails located in corners orother locations, from which it is ordinarily difficult to extract nails.The lips 8 are arranged to engage under the heads of the nails, eventhough the nails are almost completely driven home, and as a Whole, thepresent improved hatchet, is a practical and eilicient one, for thepurposes indicated.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is Ahatchet, the outer edge of the head being straight and having atransverse dove tailed nail-engaging slot adjoining the butt end of thestriking portion, the said slot extending completely between the sidesof the head, and being tapered from one side of the head to the other.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ELMER B. REED.

Witnesses:

J. L. MURPHY, G. J. Boonnnrr.

Copies of this patent may be obtained tor five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0.

Patented Oct. 27, 1914.

